An exceedingly literate and distinguished Joseph Conrad adaptation, described by Pauline Kael as "one of the most underrated and underattended of important modern films." The classic Conrad story of betrayal and shame was filmed on location in Ceylon and Borneo with a sure eye for exotic detail. An outstanding cast features Trevor Howard as Willems, the morally corrupt island drifter who betrays the trust of his employer, Captain Lingard (Ralph Richardson), out of his infatuation with an island woman. Outcast of the Islands achieves rare depth and dramatic force in capturing some of Conrad's most elusive qualities. Especially powerful is the final scene between Willems and Lingard, a confrontation with the father-figure of almost archetypal Freudian dimensions. Robert Morley as a flabby English trader, and Wendy Hiller as his wife, provide a sometimes hilarious glimpse of upper-class decorum in reduced circumstances.